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Life sentence for man who walked in to garda station and confessed to 1994 murder
Summary
Howard Kelly, aged 41, was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of 48‑year‑old Margot Seery, who was strangled in her Kenilworth Square flat in Dublin on 7–8 October 1994. Kelly walked into a Garda station in Naas in July 2014 and confessed to the killing, claiming he had been threatened by Seery and had acted in a "completely unprovoked" manner. The court heard that Seery's body was found fully clothed, face‑down on her bed, and that a post‑mortem at the time had indicated death by asphyxiation from vomit after alcohol consumption, a conclusion later challenged by Kelly's confession. The prosecution presented statements from Kelly, Garda evidence, and victim impact statements from Seery's daughter and brother. The judge, Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy, imposed a life sentence back‑dated to 27 March 2015. The case was described as highly unusual by the State prosecutor. Howard Kelly pleaded guilty.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Life sentence for man who walked in to garda station and confessed to 1994 murder. Charges or matters: the murder of Margot Seery (48) on March 27 this year; murdering Ms Seery at her home in Kenilworth Square, Dublin 6 on or between October 7 and October 8 1994. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- March 27 Incident
- October 7 Hearing Or Sentence
- October 8 1994 Hearing Or Sentence
- March 27, 2015 Incident
- July 22 2014 Hearing Or Sentence
- October 21 1994 Hearing Or Sentence
- September 2014 Incident
- September 26 2014 Incident
- March 1997 Other
- October 7 1994 Hearing Or Sentence
- Saturday October 8 Hearing Or Sentence
- 2015-11-09 Publication
Case subjects
Convicted Person
Charges: the murder of Margot Seery (48) on March 27 this year; murdering Ms Seery at her home in Kenilworth Square, Dublin 6 on or between October 7 and October 8 1994 (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy today sentenced Kelly to life imprisonment and backdated it from March 27, 2015.
Convicted Person
Outcome: Photo: Collins) A 41-year-old man has been handed down a life sentence for murder after walking in to a garda station and confessing to "strangling" a Dublin woman in her home 21 years ago in a "completely unprovoked" attack.
Places mentioned
- Central Criminal Court
- Kenilworth Square
- George McGeary from Terenure garda station
- came into Rathmines Garda Station
- and brought to Terenure garda station
- Kenilworth Square
Topics
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